Love Connection
by Storm2003
Summary: Michaela Harper joins SPD and brings an adventure of a lifetime to the front step of the B Squad Rangers. But what adventures are in store for her and Sky? Please R & R.
1. Matchmaking

Disclaimer: I don't own SPD. I own Michaela Harper and her father, Senator Harper. Any other characters that come along that you don't recognize, MOST LIKELY, belongs to me too.

A/N: For those of you who are wondering, YES, I am still going to do the Hunter/Leila prequel from the Dino Storm Series as well as Dino Storm 2: Reign of the Next Generation. I want to try and get Storm Callers up and finished under my StormCaller2003 account, but this idea has been eating away at me, so I wanted to go ahead and post it. Hope you guys like it! –Storm2003

CHAPTER 1

Matchmaking

Dr. Katherine "Kat" Minx and Commander Anubis Cruger watched the SPD B Squad rangers on the training field from a distance. They took in how the distinct personalities of the team came out even on the fighting field.

"Sydney is definitely one of the more graceful rangers. Z and Jack share a similar style but with Z…," Commander Cruger said.

"It's almost like she's dancing," Kat finished for him, mesmerized by the rangers intense sparring session. Cruger nodded in agreement.

"Exactly. With Jack it just seems like fighting. Bridge is an amazing fighter, but it seems less focused then the others, more out there. Now Sky is the best one out of all of them," Commander Cruger said, referring to the strong blue ranger who took out Jack in one swift spinning heel kick.

"Forgive me sir, then why didn't you make him the red ranger?" Kat asked. It had been a question that lingered on everyone's mind since the entire team of B Squad rangers had been appointed. No one had really stepped up to directly ask why however. Cruger sighed, knowing that he needed to speak of his decision.

"Sky is an excellent fighter, possibly the best to come out of the academy since his father was here. However, he lacks in other areas that make a good leader. While his battle tactics far exceed excellence, he is still in the learning process of other life skills that once learned, will make him a better than even his father was," Commander Cruger explained to his friend.

"Sir, the other rangers consider themselves his friend and do their best to reach him, but he's so unpredictable with his moods. Isn't there some way to get him to relax enough so that he may learn some of these skills you are speaking of?" Dr. Kat asked. Cruger just looked out at the rangers once more.

"The friendship the other four have with Sky will be important, but I have a feeling that it will take something far greater to break Sky of this distancing habit he has," the Commander replied. Dr. Kat frowned in curiosity.

"Like what?" she asked. Cruger chuckled softly.

"What do we all wish for out of life, Doctor? Love," Cruger explained. Kat would have questioned Cruger further, for she immediately suspected him of being up to something, or knowing that something would happen soon to effect the rangers, specifically Sky. She never got the chance to ask though and her suspicions died down for the time being when Boom came running up to them.

"Commander Cruger, sir, you have an important message from a Senator Harper on the line for you," Boom said while wheezing. He was out of breath from running to find Cruger.

"Thank you Boom," Cruger said before walking back to the building, Kat and Boom following close behind. Meanwhile, the rangers were just finishing their training session. All of them were sore, but Sky was standing as if he had just one. He had, as usual, done a little too well at training.

"Aw, man, Sky, are you ever going to ease up?" Bridge asked, grabbing his sore back as he tried to stand up. Sky looked down at the green ranger as he adjusted his workout glove.

"If I ease up on you guys, then I'll end up easing up on the Krybots. You wouldn't want that, would you Bridge?" Sky asked.

"No, but he wouldn't want to be in the infirmary either when you're fighting said Krybots," Z retorted sarcastically as she managed to stand straight up, hands on her hips, mostly to support her sore body but also to sport her usual attitude. Sky just sneered at the yellow ranger.

"I'm going to grab something to eat, I'll see you guys later," he said, grabbing his things from the sidelines and walking off. The four remaining rangers stayed behind, leaning on each other to support their sore bodies.

"He needs a girlfriend," Jack said flatly. Syd nodded her head.

"He's NEEDED a girlfriend for some time now. Nothing personal to Sky, he is my friend. He has the looks down but what girl is going to date that personality?" the usual perky pink ranger asked in an exhausted manner. The other rangers didn't say anything, but grunted and moaned in agreement. They gathered up their things and went inside to get something in their stomachs.

"Kat, may I speak with you a moment?" Commander Cruger asked as he entered the Doctor's lab.

"Of course, Commander," she replied, turning away from her computer. Cruger paced in front of the door, glancing from Kat to his feet.

"I just got off the communicator with Senator Daniel Harper. As you know, not only is he an old friend, but he and his wife were rangers back when Sky's father led the team. His wife Sarah passed away many years ago. She was involved in the experimentation we were conducting for the SPD white ranger powers. In fact, she was the test subject for the powers. Well, since then, many unusual things have come up involving the white ranger tests. Daniel fears that because of this, his daughter Michaela may be in danger. He has asked that I allow Michaela to stay here for some time and I have agreed. They will be arriving tomorrow morning," Commander Cruger explained.

"I'll have the spare room near the ranger's quarters prepped for her, but sir what happened in the white ranger experiments?" Kat asked, as she had not been with SPD at the time of these experiments. Cruger sighed deeply.

"While she was still able to maintain control in battle, the white ranger powers never really bonded with Sarah's DNA. We would have to take her morpher away after each battle so run tests on it. Shortly after her marriage to Daniel, her morpher along with all of her artillery disappeared along with Sarah's position on the ranger team, as she had no powers to battle alongside the other rangers. There was no sense in her arguing because she became pregnant with Michaela shortly after this all happened. The white ranger morpher and artillery has never been recovered and nobody knows what happened to it. I fear Sarah may have taken any clues she had to the grave," Cruger said sorrowfully.

"Doesn't Senator Harper know anything?" Kat questioned.

"I have asked him many times before and he has denied knowing anything. He is my friend, and I do not think he would go to these lengths to protect Michaela if he knew the entire truth," Cruger replied. Kat gave the Commander a small smile then posed another question.

"Sir, wasn't Sarah best friends with Sky's mother, who was also a ranger at the time?" Kat asked. Cruger chuckled at the memories.

"Yes, they were. I remember both weddings. Andrea Tate was the maid of honor at Sarah's wedding, as Sarah was at Andrea's. Daniel was best friend with Sky's father as well. They served as each other's best men. It amazes me that Sky and Michaela have never met before," Cruger said, getting a slyful grin on his face. Kat picked up on it.

"Sir, you don't plan to interfere in the personal lives of the rangers, do you?" she asked playfully.

"Only if it interferes with their work as rangers and cadets," Cruger replied honorably, getting a small laugh out of Dr. Kat.

WHAT IS THIS MATCHMAKER GAME THEY ARE PLAYING? HOW WILL MICHAELA AND SKY REACT TO EACH OTHER? HOW WILL THEY REACT TO THE PAST? WHAT IS THE MYSTERY BEHIND THE WHITE RANGER POWERS? IS MICHAELA AND HER DAD REALLY IN DANGER? FIND OUT IN CHAPTER 2.

Hope you guys like it.


	2. Michaela

Disclaimer: I only own Michaela Harper, Senator Harper, Clover, and most likely anything you do not recognize. Everything else SPD related belongs to whoever owns Power Rangers now.

_Author's Note: Due to SPD being early in it's season, many of us do not details that are significant to my storyline (i.e., couplings, if Sky's parents are alive or not, or the identity of the supposed seventh ranger as rumors are suggested Commander Cruger will become a ranger himself.). So do not think that anything in my story will be in the series, if it does than its PURE coincidence. Also, seeing as that most writers don't go past flirting in Power Rangers, crushing any of our hopes of apparent couplings, I'm steering away from possible connections (at least in this fanfic) for SPD. It does not in anyway suggest what I think of couplings (I personally think Sky and Syd would make a cool couple after that apparent connection in "Walls") but I'm going a certain direction in this story. On a final note, for those of you who didn't know, my "Storm Caller" story was stripped away because I broke some rule I wasn't aware of. I fixed it (hopefully) and reposted it under my StormCaller2003 account. I am slowly reposting it because I'm trying to get as close to the number of reviews I had (I had over 140!)…but I am going to finish it, along with my Dino Storm Series Stories (Hunter/Leila prequel and Dino Storm 2). So if you'd review for me, I'd really appreciate it, thanks. On with the show! – Storm2003_

_Also, I don't know Sky's dad's name so I made one up. _

CHAPTER 2

Michaela

The day had come and gone when the rangers had discussed Sky's need for a girlfriend. Cruger had informed them of the arrival of Senator Harper to SPD along with Michaela that day. The girls were now getting ready in their room when Z posed a question to her roommate.

"Hey Syd, you know how we were talking about Sky needing a girlfriend yesterday?" Z asked the pink ranger, who was engrossed with fixing her hair just right.

"Uh huh, what about it?" Sydney asked, brushing a lock to the side.

"Well, you two are close, how come you two never tried to date?" Z asked.

"Actually we did date a while ago," Syd said, not taking her eyes away from the mirror. She didn't notice Z's look of shock as she had brace herself against the wall to keep from collapsing.

"Really? When?" Z questioned, now totally at attention. Sydney finally finished fixing her hair and turned to her roommate.

"Back when we first started here. It wasn't for that long though, we just kind of goofed off. The only thing that could be classified as boyfriend/girlfriend was the kissing," Sydney explained.

"So what happened?" Z questioned, wondering how the pink and blue ranger had gotten to the current point in their friendship.

"It took us a little too long to realize that when we kissed, it was like kissing a sibling. We decided we had a better time being friends. Besides, it's nice having a big brother, having been an only child, I never really had one to chase away the boys," Sydney said chuckling and giving herself a quick look in the mirror before walking out of the room with Z.

"So what do you think Michaela is like?" Syd questioned the yellow ranger.

"Not sure. I try to keep an open mind about meeting new people. Makes it more interesting," Z answered.

"Makes what more interesting?" Jack questioned, surprising the girls as they didn't notice him or Bridge and Sky come from the opposite hallway.

"Nothing, girl talk," Syd said, causing her and Z to laugh. The guys groaned and just rolled their eyes.

"Girls," they said in unison before continuing their trek to the main lobby of SPD headquarters where Commander Cruger was waiting for them. Upon arrival, they saw their commanding officer talking with a gentleman in his late thirties to early-mid forties. He was in military style business suit with his black, slightly graying hair sleeked back with gel. He had a warm, inviting smile as he talked and laughed with Commander Cruger. He had small, distinct wrinkles around his eyes and mouth.

"Ah rangers," Commander Cruger said, acknowledging the B Squad rangers. They stood in formation and did their traditional salute.

"At ease. Daniel, these are the rangers I was telling you about. May I introduce Cadet Bridge Carson, SPD B Squad Green Ranger, Cadet Elizabeth Delgado, SPD B Squad Yellow Ranger, Cadet Jack Landers, SPD B Squad Red Ranger, Cadet Sydney Drew, SPD Pink Ranger, and Cadet Schuyler Tate, SPD B Squad Blue Ranger," Commander Cruger introduced, noticing Senator Harper's gaze lingering on Sky when his name was mentioned.

"Tate? As in Zachary Tate's son?" Senator Harper questioned, a hint of hope in his voice as the other rangers glanced from him to Sky's questioning look as he responded.

"Yes sir, he served as red ranger some years ago. Did you know him?" Sky questioned. Daniel laughed a little from shock.

"I was the best man at his wedding. I was there the day you were born," Senator Harper said. Sky, a little overcome with shock and surprise, was about to answer when a loud screech filled the air.

"LOOK OUT!" cried some cadets. The rangers, Cruger, and Harper ducked just in time to avoid getting missed by one of the hawks being trained for message servicing.

"That darn bird! I knew agreeing to live animal work was a bad idea," Cruger said to himself as he and everyone else watched the hawk in question perched himself on top of the fountain in the middle of the lobby.

"I'll get him, sir," Sky said as he ran over to the fountain. He carefully climbed in and began climbing the fixture in the middle of the fountain. Now he did get very far before slipping and falling straight into the waterfall, immediately being trampled by a heavy onset of water. He emerged, gasping for air. The other rangers were laughing, while Cruger and Harper tried to keep their chuckling down.

"Are you okay?" asked a soft voice that was new to him. Sky sat up on his knees and looked in the direction of the voice. He was met with an angelic face, a soft smile only complimented by sparkling green eyes and framed by shining, layered, shoulder-length dark hair, with slight hints of blonde streaks. Her body image was not large but not tiny, right in the middle with a perfect set of curves, which were shown off by her low rise jeans and one shoulder, kimono blouse. Despite her obvious physical beauty to Sky, she could not have been any older than Syd or Z, making her between 16 and 18.

"I'm fine," he retorted, trying to spit the water in his mouth out. He stood up, only to step wrong and slip again. The girl tried not to chuckle as he sat back up, only she was chuckling at the sudden appearance of a dog who started licking his face. Sky opened his eyes enough to see that it was a small sized Dalmatian.

"Clover, down!" ordered the girl. The dog immediately obeyed, backing away from Sky and sitting next to the girl, wagging its tail when she started to pet her. Sky finally managed to stand up and get out of the fountain.

"Sorry about that sir," Sky said to Commander Cruger. Cruger composed himself from laughing.

"It's all right, cadet. We'll get the bird somehow," Cruger said.

"I can get him," the girl said. Sky started laughing. She raised an eyebrow at him.

"Something funny?" she asked seriously.

"Nothing personal, but if I couldn't get him, what makes you think you can?" he asked seriously with a cocky grin. She narrowed her eyes at him.

"Would you like a pink to deflate that huge head of yours?" she asked sarcastically. The others rangers snickered at the comment.

"Ouch," Jack said. Sky would've responded but she walked away and stood to one side of the fountain, her back to the rangers, Cruger, and Harper. Sky looked from her to Clover, who still sat where she had been commanded. She looked up at Sky and wagged her tail before Sky shook his head and looked back at the girl. She pursed her lips together and suddenly, a sing-song kind of whistle was released into the air, so powerful and intoxicating that it was almost like it wasn't even coming from her. They all watched as it caught the attention of the hawk who, seconds later, took flight towards the girl who put her arm out, creating a perch for the hawk. Shock, awe, and amazement filled the room as another cadet took the hawk away. Cruger, Harper, and the rangers came closer to the other two.

"That was amazing. Everyone I'd like you all to meet Senator Harper's daughter, Michaela, she'll be staying with us for a little while," Cruger said, putting an arm around the shoulders of the girl as if to side hug her. The other rangers smiled at the sudden realization of the girl's identity. Sky was bewildered.

"What?" he said, not meaning to be loud enough for others to hear him.

"And Sky, I think you will be the perfect volunteer to show Michaela around tomorrow after she gets settled in. Come, I'll show you two to your rooms," Cruger said, ushering Daniel and Michaela away, along with the rangers. Senator Harper had agreed to stay one night before leaving Michaela to her new accommodations. Michaela lagged behind and walked up to Sky.

"You know, just for that arrogant comment, I'm going to make tomorrow especially fun for me. Get some sleep, blue boy, you'll need it," Michaela said, kind of sarcastically, slightly evilly, but with a smile and wink of the eye nonetheless. She flipped her hair and ran off after her father and Commander Cruger.

"AGH!" Sky screamed, shaking water all over the floor.

HA HA HA! WHAT HAS SKY GOTTEN HIMSELF INTO? WILL HE HAVE SOMETHING IN STORE FOR MICHAELA TOMORROW TOO? WHAT DOES MICHAELA HAVE IN STORE FOR HIM? DOES THIS FIRST ENCOUNTER SHOW SIGNS OF THINGS TO COME FOR THE TIME? WHAT WILL BECOME OF THE WHITE RANGER POWER DILEMMA? WHAT'S THE DEAL WITH MICHAELA AND THE BIRD CALL? FIND OUT NEXT TIME IN CHAPTER 3.


	3. Dreams and Memories

Disclaimer: I own Michaela Harper, Senator Harper, Zachary and Andrea Tate, Sarah Harper, Clover, and close to anything else you don't recognize. Anything that appears in future episodes that is similar to anything in my fic is PURELY coincidence.

CHAPTER 3

Dreams and Memories

Sky walked along the shorelines of the local beach, soaking up the sun and the fresh air. He sighed, thinking about his dad and his entire life. Ever since he could remember, he had wanted to be a ranger…a RED ranger…and he couldn't help but feel he was disappointing his father by only being second in command. His train of thought was broken when he suddenly noticed Michaela a few feet away. She was walking along the shoreline towards Sky's direction, though she had not noticed him just yet. Clover was running around, barking and jumping with the energy of the puppy years she still had left in her. Sky couldn't help but smile. Though they had gotten off to a rough start and hadn't settled differences, he couldn't deny that Michaela was beautiful. She got a little closer and noticed the blue ranger. She smiled a little nervously and stopped, letting Sky close the gap between them. They hesitated to speak, each glancing away before meeting the other's eyes.

"I'm sorry," they said at the same time, laughing softly at the reaction. Sky glanced her up and down. She was wearing a layered white dress with no sleeves that accented her curves, especially in the wind. Michaela glanced at his black belts and white button down shirt ensemble. The top few buttons were undone, revealing the well defined chest that made many first string cadet female melt. Clover suddenly barked and rubbed her body against the back of Michaela's legs, causing Michaela to stumbled forward a little. Sky immediately reacted and caught with his arms around her waist. Their eyes locked instantly and Sky swallowed nervously. He wasn't sure what possessed him to do so but he slowly inched his face toward Michaela's, his heart skipping a beat when she did not back away but actually closed her eyes in anticipation. As he got closer, he closed his eyes too, anticipating the feel of her lips on his until………..

"SKY! WAKE UP MAN!" cried the familiar voice of Bridge. The blue ranger instantly opened his eyes and realized he was caressing one of his pillows as if it had been Michaela. He sat up quickly, confused.

"What's going on?" he asked, unable to think of anything else to ask.

"You're over an hour late meeting Cruger," Jack said, pointing to the clock beside Sky's bed. Sky looked over and his muscles tightened in anger as he was indeed an hour late meeting his high Commander.

"Man, what happened to my alarm!" he screamed.

"It's not on dude," Bridge said.

"That's impossible, I always remember to turn it on right before I go to bed..urgh…that little sneak!" Sky screamed as he jumped out of bed and rushed to get ready, suspecting Michaela of tampering with his alarm mid sentence. He rushed into the bathroom and the door closed behind him, Jack and Bridge just staring at him the whole time.

"He wants her," Jack said.

"Bad," Bridge added before they left the room to go find Z and Syd. In five minutes flat, Sky was ready and in uniform, rushing down to meet Cruger and the others.

"Cadet Tate, so glad you could join us," Commander Cruger said, trying to hide his annoyance as Sky came to a complete stop from running and did the traditional salute.

"My sincerest apologies sir it..," Sky started to say but was cut off by Senator Harper.

"If he's anything like his dad, this doesn't happen a lot, if at all. I'd let it slide this one time Anubis, besides I got to spend some extra time with Michaela before I left," Senator Harper said to the Commander. At the mention of her name, Michaela came over from talking with Syd and Z and hugged her father, smiling. She glanced over at Sky and frowned at the glare he was sending her way.

"Well, I think we'll leave you two to your tour. I trust you to show Michaela the finer points of our city Cadet Tate," Commander Cruger said.

"Yes sir," Sky said, saluting. Senator Harper kissed Michaela on the top of the head and gave her a quick hug before following Anubis out of the room. Michaela smiled after her father then frowned when she noticed Sky glaring at her.

"What's up your butt?" she asked bluntly. Sky closed the gap between them and pointed his finger at her.

"I know you came into my room and shut off my alarm just to get me in trouble with Commander Cruger…," Sky started to say, anger raging in him. Michaela was not swayed by his attitude, much to the surprise of Z and Syd who were used to new people being intimidated by Sky.

"First of all, get your finger out of my face, Blue Boy. Second, I didn't touch your precious alarm clock, let alone go into your room. And you don't need help looking bad in front of Cruger, especially after that sorry attempt at animal rescue yesterday. Now can we drop the attitude and start this tour, I'd actually like to go outside TODAY," Michaela emphasized, not cowering to Sky's glare. Sky struggled to find something to say but finally gave up with an aggravated grunt.

"Fine, right this way," he through clenched teeth. He stalked towards the garage with Michaela walking coolly behind. Syd and Z watched them walk off.

"Note for future reference that cutting Sky's alarm clock off is not a good prank," Syd said to her roommate.

"Especially when he's trying to suppress an attraction towards someone," Z commented before following the pink ranger off to find Jack and Bridge. Hours later found Michaela lagging behind Sky as he walked around the marketplace.

"And over here is one of the oldest buildings in the city…," Sky said before glancing back and seeing Michaela yawning. She saw him looking at her and flushed a little.

"Sorry," she muttered.

"Do you have a problem with what I'm showing you?" Sky asked seriously.

"It's boring," Michaela said, whining a little bit. Sky fought back the urge to blow up at her, doubting it would have any affect on her just like his previous outbursts.

"This is the history of our city," he argued. Michaela stared at him blankly.

"Okay, then YOU'RE boring. Lighten up blue boy," Michaela said, playfully patting Sky on the shoulder as she walked past him. Sky had had enough. He grabbed Michaela's wrist and spun her towards him, grabbing hold of her other arm as she gasped in surprise. He put pressure on her, gaining her attention.

"Stop calling me that! I'm tired of your attitude. You know, I don't know how your dad puts up with you, that must be why he bummed you off of us. I just don't see why I had to get stuck baby sitting you," Sky fumed, narrowing his eyes at her. Something about the way he was holding her, clutching her wrists together, brought back some painful memories Michaela had spent years trying to suppress from her mind. Things that had happened she hadn't even told her father. All these memories, mixed with what Sky was saying, pushed Michaela over the edge. She glared up at him, not breaking eye contact and not noticing a few tears falling from her eyes. She brought her arms out, bringing Sky's with her. Then gave a hard knee kick to his side, causing him to release one of her arms to grab his side. Michaela took the opportunity to flip him over, releasing the other arm from her grip.

"I'm definitely NOT the one with the attitude problem, BLUE BOY. My dad "bummed me off" here because he thinks Anubis can protect me from somebody who's after him. What he doesn't know is that they aren't REALLY after him. And as far as BABY-sitting goes, I'd say it's more like I'm babysitting YOU the way you are acting. And just to prove to you that I don't need a babysitter, see if you can catch me before I get back to SPD Headquarters!" Michaela spat. Sky jumped up, anticipating her attempt to run away when really she just disappeared right before his eyes. Sky stood there in shock, trying to comprehend what had just happened.

"What? Where?" he stammered to himself when he suddenly stopped and figured it out. Michaela had more than one power. She had that weird animal call from yesterday and she could also disappear, or blend in with her surroundings, or something!

"AGH!" Sky screamed, gaining attention from passerbys who had not already been staring at the couple arguing. He rushed off back towards his bike to see if he could track Michaela on his scanner. He ran past an alleyway where Michaela materialized back into seeing form when she knew it was safe. More tears had fallen from her eyes as more memories came back to her. Dozens of things surrounding her screaming mother, the sound of blood pouring, objects connecting with bones, and the most evil of laughs. That face. She'd never forget that face. The face that took her mother away and crushed a part of her heart forever.

"Mom," she whimpered, finally letting go of the rest of the tears she had in her.


	4. Apologies and Flirting

Disclaimer: the usual…………….

CHAPTER 4

Apologies and Flirting

"YOU DID WHAT!" Syd screamed into her phone, having received a call from Sky. She was in her room, hanging out with Z when her phone had rung. She picked it up and answered in her usual perky tone, only to have her best friend explain what had just gone down between him and Michaela.

"I couldn't help it Syd, she was getting me so angry," Sky pleaded.

"I don't care Sky, Z and I talk to you like that all the time and you don't get angry with us! You scared the poor girl, what is your problem!" Syd asked her fellow ranger. Z frowned, doing her best to keep up with the conversation as she was only hearing one side of it.

"I..uh..well..I…," Sky stumbled, trying to answer her question.

"I…uh…well…SPIT IT OUT SKY!" Syd screamed to him, upset beyond control. Z knew she needed to intervene before Syd blew a gasket, so she grabbed the phone from her roommate.

"Sky, why do you get so angry at her? Nobody gets under your skin that easily," Z said, honestly questioning her fellow ranger. She heard Sky sigh and mumble something she knew she wasn't supposed to hear.

"Yea well, I'm usually not attracted to anyone else," he said softly. Z's eyes bulged out.

"YOU LIKE HER!" she screamed, causing Syd to perk up.

"Would you keep it down! I don't want Jack and Bridge to know. Look, I'm going to try and find her and try to do SOMETHING to make up for scaring her but could you guys cover for me over there? Please?" Sky said. Z was a little surprised by the pleading sound in his voice.

"Sure, we'll do what we can for now but I can't promise how long we'll be able to pull this off," Z said.

"That's all I need. I owe you two," Sky said. Z smirked.

"Oh, don't start counting now," she said sarcastically before hanging up. Syd just stared at her.

"Well?" she asked.

"Let's just hope Sky doesn't make a further fool of himself in his attempt to find Michaela and apologize to her," Z said. Meanwhile, Sky was exhausting his search for his missing charge. He was silently cursing himself for whatever he had done to her. He had to admit, if Syd or Z had said that stuff to him, he wouldn't have reacted the same way. It was true that he was developing feelings for Michaela, and was not sure how to go about handling them. But what baffled him was that scared look she got when he grabbed her. He got a vibe from her, like she was recalling something. Something that horrified her.

Sky found himself near the harbor storage centers. There was plenty of hiding spaces and he was scanning all over for her. He was about to move on to the next place when Krybots appeared.

"Great, just what I need," Sky said, putting his scanner away and engaging in a fight. He flipped, kicked, punched, and ducked with the best of them. He was fighting so hard that he didn't notice how fast the Krybots were multiplying and he wasn't about to stop to call for help. He also didn't notice Broodwing hanging nearby.

"Say goodbye Blue ranger," he said, about to unless one of his bats that would've been lethal for Sky. Unfortunately for Broodwing, Michaela was nearby in invisibility form and saw him, knowing what he was planning. She might have just fought with Sky, but she didn't want him hurt. She got an idea and unleashed a call from her mouth, but no one nearby heard her. That was what she was going for. Suddenly, the Krybots and Broodwing stopped, hearing a lot of barking. Sky frowned.

"What in the world?" he questioned silently, before a mob of dogs came running towards the group. Everyone was stunned beyond recognition and Sky suddenly felt something pull his arm to the side just as the Krybots ran from the dogs. He stumbled and struggled only to land on his back and something fell on top of him. From the impact of falling on Sky, Michaela was knocked out of invisibility mode. Sky his hands gripping her hips and they were both breathing hard from the shock. She smiled nervously at him.

"Hi," she said simply. Sky frowned, still a little baffled.

"Hi," he said. Michaela just smiled from looking up and noticing that Broodwing was gone.

"Oh good, he's gone," she said, moving off of Sky. Sky sat up and looked at where she had been looking.

"Who?" he asked.

"Some freaky looking guy hanging upside down from the building. I heard him say "Say goodbye Blue ranger" and that's when I called the dogs," Michaela explained.

"Speaking of dogs," Sky said, looking past Michaela. She looked behind her and saw Clover and RIC approaching them. She smiled, looking back and Sky and got up to go to them. Sky rushed up and gently grabbed one arm, careful to not repeat the incident from before.

"You saved me after what I said and did to you?" he asked, unsure of her motivation. Michaela sighed and looked at him.

"Look, I might be upset with you but I don't want you to like..ya know..get hurt or something worse. I can tell you're not a bad guy," she said.

"How?" he asked. It was just then that RIC and Clover came up to either side of Michaela. She just looked at the blue ranger.

"A bad guy wouldn't have friends like you have. A bad guy wouldn't have come looking for me. A bad guy would've done a lot worse than you did," Michaela said gently. Sky felt a pang of guilt and swallowed hard.

"Look, I'm…I'm really sorry about that. I don't know why I lost my anger so easily with you. Honestly, I knew I wouldn't have reacted that way had it been Syd or Z, not that that's an excuse of any kind, but, I'm sorry. I really didn't have any intention of scaring you the way I did," Sky said. Michaela looked into Sky's eyes and saw how sincere he was being. She sighed and collected herself.

"Well, I didn't help by antagonizing you so maybe we could start over?" Michaela asked, being sincere, yet feeling a little corny with the whole conversation. Sky smiled and nodded.

"Sure, sounds good," he said before stepping back and clearing his throat, putting out his hand.

"Schuyler Tate, SPD B Squad Blue Ranger. Call me Sky," he said, going from serious to actually laughing a little. Michaela smiled and noticed how attractive Sky was when he smiled. She shook his hand back.

"Michaela Harper, my friends call me Kay," she said. Sky raised an eyebrow questioningly.

"Really? So it's Kay now?" he questioned. She smirked.

"Well, right now, only to you. Race you back to SPD," she said quickly before running off.

"Hey wait up!" Sky screamed, laughing as he chased her. Clover and RIC followed close behind as the two chased each other through the city. When they neared SPD headquarters, Michaela got a little tired and Sky caught her, binding his arms playfully around her shoulders. Little did they know that they were being watched by roaming eyes, both good and bad.

"Hmmm, looks like the blue ranger is giving us some leverage," Grumm whispered to himself as he watched the two.

"Move over Bridge I can't see!" Z yelled as she tried to watch the two from the window.

"Would you keep it down? I can't hear," Jack said. Sky and Michaela laughed at their playfulness when suddenly Sky got serious.

"Can I ask you something?" he asked. Michaela noticed his seriousness and got a little concerned.

"Sure," she said.

"What did you remember that scared you when I grabbed you?" he asked carefully, not sure if he was intruding on private territory. Michaela's face fell. She wanted to get to know Sky and the other rangers better but she wasn't sure if she was ready to talk about something that not even Cruger or her dad knew. Sky noticed this and spoke up.

"Listen, you don't have to tell me. Just know I'm here to talk if you need it," Sky said. A single tear escaped Michaela's eye as she smiled in appreciation. Sky engulfed her in a gentle, friendly hug. Michaela accepted it whole heartedly but wondered when she would be ready to tell everyone about her mother and what had been left to her after the tragedy.


	5. Flashbacks and Mumbles

Disclaimer: the usual….

CHAPTER 5

Flashbacks and Mumbles

"Explain to me again why we have to go to this thing?" Sky asked of Jack and Bridge. The green and red rangers groaned again.

"We're the only active rangers on Earth. It will look good for headquarters if we're at the ball," Jack explained.

"Besides, Michaela's dad is coming back for it and he asked that we be there as his guests," Bridge said. Sky sucked his teeth. Commander Cruger had briefed them that morning about a ball the coming weekend that would be hosted by SPD. It was a really fancy, up scale way of distracting people from Grumm's reign of terror, aside from anything else that had been printed on the invitations.

"It's such a waste of time. We could use it to bring Grumm down sooner rather than later," Sky babbled, getting up to jab at his punching bag.

"As much as the ranger in me wants to agree with you on that, the Jack in me says it's just as unhealthy and dangerous to be so focused on work and forget to take some time to relax," said the leader.

"I gotta go with Jack on this one," Bridge said. Sky was about to give a rebuttle when Syd and Z came in.

"Hey guys, we're going shopping for dresses for the ball and wondered if you wanted to come and get fitted for tuxes?" Syd asked.

"We can grab some lunch while we're at, Cruger gave us the afternoon," Z suggested.

"Sweet, I'm in," Jack said. Sky rolled his eyes.

"Why can't we just wear our uniforms?" he whined. Michaela walked in with her purse strapped around her shoulder.

"Hey guys, you ready to go? Can't wait to see you in your tuxes," she said, giving Jack and Bridge a smile, but winking at Sky. He perked up when she came in.

"And I can't wait to try mine on," he said walking up to her and ushering her out of the room, leaving his stunned teammates gawking at his un-Sky behavior.

"It looked like Sky, sounded like Sky, but it didn't talk like Sky," Z observed. Syd snorted and covered her nose and mouth with her hand to try and stifle her laughter. She wasn't doing a very good job as the others joined her and followed Sky and Michaela out for a day of shopping.

A FEW HOURS LATER…………………….

"You guys looked awesome in your tuxes," Z told her fellow male rangers.

"Yea, but how come we didn't get to see you girls in your dresses?" Bridge complained.

"You mean aside from the fact that you didn't even want to come in the store?" Syd questioned with a smirk. Bridge blushed a little.

"Oh yeah," he said.

"Besides, we have to give you something to look forward to seeing at the party," Michaela joked. Suddenly, the grouped was stopped by a swarm of Krybots. They immediately got into defensive stances.

"Aw man, and I thought this was going to be a good day," Jack said. Michaela carefully dispensed of the clothes in a pile away from the fight, then followed the rangers into battle. Flips, kicks, and punches were thrown about, mostly by the rangers at the Krybots. The few hits the Krybots managed to land on the rangers were easily retaliated against. Sky kept fighting but managed to notice Michaela engaging in some fierce battling and suddenly kick into a new power. Much like Conner from Dino Thunder, she was so fast; she was in one place one second and about twenty feet away the next second. Sky was in disbelief.

"How does she have so many powers?" he asked himself before fighting off more Krybots. Michaela was fairing extremely well against the minions but stopped short when she came face to face with a horror from her past. Emperor Grumm had come down personally to take her hostage in exchange for the white ranger powers that he assumed SPD was in possession of. Unlike Michaela, he did not remember her.

"Well, well, what do we have here?" he asked rhetorically. Michaela was frozen in fear as painful memories plagued her mind. She didn't even notice the tears in her eyes. She wondered how she mustered up the strength to even back away from Grumm. He backed her into a wall and she crumbled in fear, succumbing to tears.

"NO! MOM! NO! GET AWAY, HELP!" she screamed, grabbing her head and screaming with all her might, unsure if she was screaming at Grumm or the images in her head. Sky got enough time away from fighting to notice the situation Michaela was in.

"KAY!" he cried, breaking into what had to be the fasted run he had ever been able to succumb to.

"SPD EMERGENCY!" he cried as he jumped into the air and flipped into the pathway between Grumm and Michaela.

"Back off ugly!" he growled, blocking him from Michaela, who was now shivering in fear. Grumm just laughed evilly.

"No matter, I'll get her some other time," he declared with confidence before disappearing, the other rangers running up to the scene just as he did so. Sky, confused by Grumm's lack of pursuing battle, turned his attention to Michaela. He knelt down and gently tried to calm her by placing his hands on her trembling shoulders.

"NO! STOP! GO AWAY!" she screamed, starting to hit at Sky or the air, as the others noticed she was being very accurate in her tantrum.

"MICHAELA, MICHAELA, STOP! It's me!" Sky screamed, breaking out of his morph to show her that it wasn't Grumm and that he wasn't trying to hurt her. Michaela seemed to come out of her trance long enough to notice that it was Sky in front of her, the others nearby, and Grumm was no where in sight. Once this registered in her mind, she broke down into tears and threw her arms around Sky neck, burying her face in his shoulder. Sky, again confused, tightened his arms around the trembling girl to try and comfort her. He glanced at his teammates, his expression asking them what he should do. The others weren't sure themselves. A few hours later found Syd, Z, Bridge, and Jack in the main conference room with Cruger and Kat. They had agreed to brief Sky and what Cruger said later, as Michaela had begged him to stay with her.

"Commander, I'm really worried about Michaela. What's wrong with her?" Syd pleaded, concern for her new friend overcoming her.

"I wish I knew Sydney, I really do. For now, it seems that Sky is able to calm her down. Maybe he will be able to find out the truth of why she reacted that way," Cruger suggested. Jack snickered.

"Wonder if he can do it without ticking her off," he said under his breath.

"What was that Cadet Landers?" Cruger asked. Jack snapped to attention.

"Nothing sir!" he responded.

Meanwhile, Sky was in Michaela's room. He was sitting with his back against her propped up pillows and was cradling the sleeping form of Michaela to him. He hadn't moved for some time and was finding himself in a mix of exhaustion and pain from his leg falling asleep. He carefully wiggled around to try and get feeling back in his leg. His breath caught in his throat when Michaela began to move around too.

"Mom," she mumbled, snuggling back up to Sky. He frowned, wondering if she was talking in her sleep and if she was waking up. He gently ran his fingers through her hair.

"What about your mom, Kay?" he asked softly. She again started mumbling, still making Sky question if she was even aware she was talking to him.

"Grumm killed her… when I was four… I saw him…," she mumbled before drifting back into deep sleep. Sky was stunned. No wonder she had reacted that way. But the question was, what now?


End file.
